Los Angeles · Bay Area · San Diego · Central Valley
Construction estimating services in California
Takeoffs and priced estimates for California general contractors, subcontractors and suppliers, with prevailing wage, Title 24 and seismic scope carried where the documents require it.
- LA, Bay Area, San Diego, Sacramento
- Prevailing wage where it applies
- 24 to 48 hours
In short
Estimating in California at a glance
MassBid Estimation prepares quantity takeoffs and cost estimates for construction projects across California. Every trade on the drawings is measured, priced to the project's ZIP code and checked twice, and the package is typically delivered in 24 to 48 hours. Recent California work includes schools, large retail stores, a multi-story concrete building in Los Angeles and a wastewater treatment plant.
- Markets
- Los Angeles and Orange County, the Bay Area, San Diego, the Inland Empire, Sacramento and the Central Valley
- Recent California work
- Schools, retail stores, a multi-story concrete building, a treatment plant
- California cost drivers
- Prevailing wage, Title 24 energy code, seismic detailing, school and hospital review
- Code
- California Building Standards Code, Title 24, including the energy code and CALGreen
- Turnaround
- 24 to 48 hours on most projects
- Checked by
- A separate QA team, twice on every job
- Team
- 20+ in-house estimators, typically 7 to 10 years in the trade
- Quote
- Free, usually back in about 20 minutes
Los Angeles · 2:00 PM bid
In California the labor rate is in the bid documents, and so is half the scope you didn't expect.
California is the most expensive and the most regulated place to build in the country, and the two are connected. Public work pays prevailing wage. The energy code reaches into the envelope, the lighting and the mechanical system. Seismic design adds steel, anchorage and bracing to everything.
None of this is hidden, but it is spread across the specifications and the general notes. Four things separate a California estimate from one priced like any other state.
Four things a California estimate has to get right
01 · The wage
Prevailing wage on public works
Public works projects in California pay prevailing wage, set by craft and county by the Department of Industrial Relations. Labor priced at open-shop rates is wrong by a wide margin.
What changes
Tell us the project is prevailing wage and labor is priced at the determination for that county and craft.
02 · The energy code
Title 24 scope left out
The energy code drives insulation, glazing performance, lighting controls, mechanical efficiency and commissioning. Much of it is in the compliance forms, not the plans.
What changes
Energy-code items shown in the documents are taken off as specified and listed, so they can be seen.
03 · The earthquake
Seismic detailing and bracing
Heavier reinforcing, holdowns, shear walls, and seismic bracing of ceilings, ductwork, piping and equipment add material and labor that a non-seismic estimate does not carry.
What changes
Reinforcing is taken off bar by bar, and bracing and anchorage are counted where they are detailed.
04 · The reviewer
Schools and hospitals
Public schools are reviewed by the Division of the State Architect and hospitals by the state health-facility agency, with inspection and documentation requirements that add general conditions cost.
What changes
Inspection, testing and documentation requirements in the specifications are carried in general requirements.
California markets
Four California markets, priced separately
The gap between the Bay Area and the Central Valley is as wide as the gap between two different states.
Los Angeles and Orange County
Multifamily, retail, studio, school and infrastructure work across a vast basin, with strong union presence and seismic design throughout.
The Bay Area
San Francisco, Oakland and San Jose: the highest labor rates in the state, tight sites, and technology, life-science and housing work.
San Diego and the Inland Empire
Military, biotech and housing in San Diego; distribution centers and retail across Riverside and San Bernardino counties.
Sacramento and the Central Valley
State buildings and schools around Sacramento, and Fresno, Stockton and Bakersfield at noticeably lower rates.
Real California work
Sample takeoffs from California projects
Pages from finished California jobs. Client names, street names and title blocks are removed; the quantities are as delivered. Click any page to enlarge.
Concrete structure
Foundation takeoff for a multi-story Los Angeles building
Protects you fromA mat foundation priced like a slab.
School
Flooring takeoff for a California elementary school
Protects you fromThree concrete colors ordered as one.
Retail
Flooring takeoff for a large California retail store
Protects you fromA sales floor at one rate.
Site utilities
Site utilities takeoff for a California school site
Protects you fromPipe measured without its size.
Every estimate is built to the client's own specification, so yours may be laid out differently. To see a past project in your own trade, ask for an example. Examples are finished work for other projects, not an estimate of yours; for pricing on your own job, send your California drawings for a free quote.
Real California figures
What recent California projects cost, by trade
Trade costs from estimates we delivered on California projects. The full breakdowns and sample pages are on the linked service pages.
The Los Angeles building shows what dense urban concrete costs: $102.52 per square foot of building for the concrete alone, on a small footprint with a mat foundation and tall walls.
Figures are trade cost before general requirements and markups, from the delivered estimates. Per-square-foot figures are per square foot of building. They are specific to those projects and are not a price guide.
Real jobs, not a price list. Each figure comes from one project, priced for its own ZIP code and that client's wages, overhead and profit. Prices change by region and over time. Yours will be priced for your location.
| California project and trade | Cost | Per sq ft |
|---|---|---|
| Multi-story building, Los Angeles, 8,300 sq ft: concrete | $846,899 | $102.52 |
| Multi-story building, Los Angeles: masonry | $203,474 | $24.63 |
| Wastewater treatment plant: coatings and waterproofing | $1,362,902 | |
| Retail store office fit-out: drywall | $54,326 |
Full sample
Read a full sample, page by page
Concrete and rebar, from a finished job: a multi-story building in California. Open it full screen, scroll through all 8 pages and zoom in on any line.
This is one real job, shown as an example. It was built to that client's own specification: their wage rates, labor style, type of pricing, and overhead and profit. Prices also change by region and over time, so yours will be priced for your location.
Want a current sample in your own trade or specialty, or have a question? Use the contact form, email [email protected] or call (832) 356-4237.
Trades and cities
Services with California work to show
Concrete and rebar
The Los Angeles building: footings, mat foundation, walls and slab reinforcing.
Concrete estimatingFlooring
A school and a large retail store, measured by finish tag.
Flooring estimatingSite utilities
A school site's storm, sewer and water, pipe by size.
Site utilities estimatingWaterproofing and coatings
A treatment plant's coatings, by structure and system.
Waterproofing and coatings
California cities we price
- Los Angeles
- San Diego
- San Jose
- San Francisco
- Sacramento
- Fresno
- Long Beach
- Oakland
- Bakersfield
- Anaheim
- Irvine
- Riverside
- Stockton
- San Bernardino
- Santa Rosa
- Roseville
Pricing data
How a California project is priced
Quantities are priced from our own pricing database, built with local vendors across the United States. The estimator enters the project's ZIP code and gets current material prices for that part of California.
Material prices change from region to region and from month to month, so a price book or a national average is out of date before the bid goes in.
Priced by ZIP code
Current local material prices for the place the job is built, not a national average.
Updated by vendors
Local vendors update their prices in the database as they change.
Labor as you bid it
Union, open shop, or Davis-Bacon and prevailing wage rates with fringes.
How it works
From California drawings to a finished estimate
Send the drawings
Plans, specifications and addenda, with the project address or ZIP code, the bid date and any bid form or template you have to fill in.
Free quote
We review the set and reply with a quote and a delivery date, usually within about 20 minutes.
Takeoff, pricing and two QA reviews
Quantities are measured on the drawings and priced to the project's ZIP code. A separate QA team checks the quantities against the plans, then the priced estimate.
Delivery and revisions
The package typically arrives within 24 to 48 hours. Addenda and revisions are free, with no limit and no time limit, and are handled on priority.
The work is done in-house by more than 20 estimators, typically with 7 to 10 years of industry experience.
What it costs
Estimating prices for California projects
- Single project
- From $199. Simple scopes typically run $100 to $250.
- Larger buildings
- Typically $200 to $500. Large or multi-building projects are quoted individually.
- Monthly plan
- From $1,499 for 10 to 15 projects, for contractors who bid every week.
Every job is quoted individually from the drawings, and the quote is free. See all pricing
After delivery
An editable Excel workbook and free revisions
- Formulas built in
An Excel workbook you can change yourself
The estimate arrives as an editable Excel workbook with the formulas built in. Change a quantity, a rate or a markup and every total follows. Move overhead and profit from 25% to 30% and the whole bid recalculates on the spot.
- No waiting
Adjust your bid at the last minute
If something changes just before the deadline, you do not have to send the estimate back and wait. Open the workbook, change the number and submit. The control stays with you.
- Priority turnaround
Free revisions, with no limit
Addenda, scope changes and pricing updates are all free, however many times you come back, and there is no time limit. Revisions are handled on priority and typically come back within an hour to a few hours.
Questions
California construction estimating FAQ
Yes. We estimate projects in every California market, including Los Angeles, the Bay Area, San Diego, the Inland Empire, Sacramento and the Central Valley, each priced to the project's ZIP code.
Yes. Tell us the project is public works and labor is priced at the prevailing wage determination for that county and craft. Prevailing wage applies to public works over a small dollar threshold.
It varies more than in any other state. On one multi-story building in Los Angeles we estimated, concrete alone was $102.52 per square foot of building and masonry $24.63, trade cost before markups.
Energy-code items shown in the drawings, specifications and compliance documents, such as insulation levels, glazing performance and lighting controls, are taken off as specified. We price what is documented; we do not prepare the compliance calculations.
Yes. Recent work includes flooring for an elementary school modernization and site utilities for a school site. Public school projects are reviewed by the Division of the State Architect, and the inspection and testing requirements in the specifications are carried in general requirements.
Yes, where it is detailed. Reinforcing is taken off bar by bar, holdowns and anchors are counted, and seismic bracing of ceilings and mechanical systems is included where the drawings show it.
Tax is its own line at the rate for the project's location. California's base rate is 7.25%, and district taxes raise it in most cities.
Yes. This page shows a full sample from a finished job (concrete and rebar, for a multi-story building in California), which you can open full screen and read page by page. It was built to that client's own specification, so the wage rates, pricing and overhead and profit are theirs. Ask us for a current sample in your own trade.
From our own pricing database, built with local vendors across the United States. An estimator enters the project's ZIP code and gets current material prices for that part of California, and vendors update their prices as they change. Labor is priced as union or open shop, or at Davis-Bacon rates with fringes on government work.
Yes. The estimate is delivered as an editable Excel workbook with the formulas built in. Change any quantity, rate or markup and the whole estimate recalculates. If overhead and profit was set at 25% and you want 30%, change that one cell and every total updates, so you can adjust your number minutes before the bid is due without sending it back to us.
As many as you need. Every revision is free, including addenda, scope changes and pricing updates, however many times you come back, and there is no time limit. Revisions are handled on priority and are typically returned within an hour to a few hours, depending on the size of the change.
Most packages are delivered in 24 to 48 hours. The quote is free and usually comes back in about 20 minutes.
A single project starts at $199, and simple scopes typically run $100 to $250. Larger buildings typically run $200 to $500. Every estimate is built to the client's own specification.
Other service areas and services
Bidding a California project? Send the drawings.
Free quote in about 20 minutes. Takeoffs and estimates typically in 24 to 48 hours, priced to the project's California ZIP code and built to your format, with free revisions with no limit.